Pick a Song, Any Song
by kickstergal
Summary: 'She cursed herself for being able to read him more often now, and then she cursed him for knowing it, because there was only one word at the back of his steady gaze and it was DARE.' Lisbon has a song stuck in her head. Jane tries to get it out.


DISCLAIMER: I have as much chance of owning anything to do with The Mentalist as I do of becoming one of those sparkly vampires from _Twilight._ Although I think the question is if I was a vampire, would I _want_ to be sparkly?

There was an old bluesy tune she had stuck in her head as the elevator opened on her floor. Lisbon couldn't for the life of her name it or even get beyond the chorus; it had been plaguing her since breakfast and damned if she was going to let some half-memory of a long-ago song beat her.

"Name three blues singers from the last two decades." She snapped at Rigsby as she approached his desk, and he sat up straighter, crooked his neck as if to loosen the words in his throat.

"Uh. Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin and...Pink."

She stared at him. "Pink?"

Cho looked up from his desk to fix Rigsby with a stare. "Pink? What are you, a twelve year old girl?"

Rigsby glared at Cho, and then gave her that look that made her feel like she'd whacked him with a rolled up newspaper. "I panicked. Sorry...boss."

Rigsby looked to Van Pelt for help, something she should have bet herself an extra cream donut would have happened at some point today.

"Van Pelt likes Pink. Right?"

Van Pelt squinted apologetically at Rigsby. "I'm kind of a Bon Jovi kind of girl. Sorry."

Lisbon surveyed her team disbelievingly. "Bon Jovi, Pink? What about you, Cho?"

Cho shrugged. "I read. Sometimes I sing along to that ad with the goose on television."

She waved a hand at him and turned to the rest of her team.

"Blues singers? Last twenty years? Somebody tell me collectively we have more in our heads than Pink, Jovi and the goose."

"I, personally, grew up on the Spice Girls."

She turned to find Jane leaning against Van Pelt's desk, and refused to dignify that remark with a comment, despite the blush creeping up her neck.

"Forget it. I have this song stuck in my head and I can't figure out-"

"Wannabe? Who Do You Think You Are? Say You'll Be There?" He leant forward, attempting to look sultry. "2 Become 1?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Stop." Then flapped a hand at him as he grinned. "I didn't mean the song!"

She flicked a glance at her team, who were all looking avidly from her to Jane. She cleared her throat, knowing she was probably bright red by now. For that, she planned to put salt in Jane's tea at the next available opportunity.

"Now that we've had our little trip down memory lane, why don't we all-"

"-Sing it." Jane invited.

She cursed herself for being able to read him more often now, and then she cursed him for knowing it, because there was only one word at the back of his steady gaze and it was _DARE_.

"I don't need to know that badly." She backpedalled, trying to use her own brand of mental telepathy to communicate that she would break both of Jane's legs and probably his iPod if he continued down this path.

Cho thankfully seconded the motion. "She really, really doesn't."

She pointed to Cho. "See, he knows I can't sing."

"Oh, nonsense. I'll give you a dollar." Jane smiled at her, and she was almost glad that it was his genuine smile rather than his you-can't-reach-me one, except that currently she was the one in the hot seat and she knew he was all too aware she was trying frantically to get out of it.

She stared at him. "Tempting, but no. Enough of this, we have a case to solve."

"Oh, hush. It'll just take a minute, obviously this is bothering you. Come on, Lisbon. Show us what you got."

She glared at him. "I'll sing the minute you, Cho and Rigsby put on a performance of the Star Spangled Banner in front of the precinct-"

"Done." Jane jumped in and she held up a finger.

"In your underwear."

"So not done." Rigsby interjected, and Cho nodded. "I concur."

Jane thumped a hand on Van Pelt's desk, ignoring her as she jumped.

"Oh, come on guys. Where's your sense of adventure?"

Cho raised a brow. "With my better judgement and sense of self-preservation. You?"

"What about your-" Jane stopped, adjusted his coat. "Meh, wouldn't have done it anyway. Shall we move on?"

It was her turn to raise a brow at him. He shrugged back, and she would have sworn he had succumbed to boredom if she hadn't caught the smirk at the back of his gaze.

And as she ran the team through their assigned tasks she deliberately ignored the fact he had his patented _I'm-not-planning-on-doing-anything-bothersome _face on, as well as the fact the strains of the nameless song were still running around the same track in her mind.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I really appreciate the awesome fantastic feedback from my recent first go at a Mentalist fanfic- _Two Steps._ I felt really loved and made welcome - thank you XD. This story was one of those what-would-happen-if-this-happened moments; am thinking I may continue the theme after we find out what song Lisbon has stuck in her head...loved that she had a Spice Girls CD on the show; everyone's secret guilty and not-so-guilty pleasure. Have a great week!


End file.
